Himalayan tahr (Hemitragus jemlahicus) recreational hunting values

Context Himalayan tahr (Hemitragus jemlahicus) are a valued game resource that can cause environmental harm, requiring control of tahr populations below policy-prescribed thresholds. Effective game management requires understanding of the benefits to hunters of game resources and how hunter behaviours change in response to changes in hunt attributes, including game-animal densities, hunt duration, presence of other hunters and travel distance. Aims To identify the value of recreational Himalayan tahr hunting and how that value is affected by changes in hunt attributes for different types of hunter, thereby identifying the value of tahr as a recreational resource and opportunities for enhancing recreational hunting experiences. Methods Hunter differences were explored through factor analysis and cluster analysis, which identified three different groups of hunters on the basis of motivations and hunting activity. Preferences for hunt attributes were explored with a choice experiment that used a pivot design around actual travel distances to measure the relative importance of hunt-related attributes. Latent class analysis of choice experiment responses identified three discrete groups of hunters who sought different activity settings. Key results Results showed the high value of recreational tahr hunting for all three groups of tahr hunters. Tahr hunters were uniformly focussed on trophy bull tahr, and reduced probabilities of securing a trophy would diminish recreational hunting effort significantly. Hunting activity was not affected by adult female tahr populations. These results suggest that managing tahr to low densities, but improving trophy potential, can provide concurrent environmental and recreational benefits. Conclusions Changes in hunt attributes, such as trophy potential and presence of other hunters, have significant effects on hunt benefits, site choice and the amount of recreational tahr hunting. Implications The present study identified potential gains from active management of Himalayan tahr and tahr hunters.

New Olonbulukia material and its related assemblage reveal an early radiation of stem Caprini along the north of the Tibetan Plateau

Living Caprini are dominant bovids in the pan-Tibetan area that are strongly adapted to dry steppe and high-mountain meadow habitats. Some taxa with Holarctic distributions, e.g., Ovis Linnaeus, 1758, were thought to originate on the Tibetan Plateau and subsequently dispersed elsewhere, which was depicted as an ‘out of Tibet’ story. However, except for some information on a stem caprine assemblage from the Qaidam Basin, the early evolution of Caprini around the Tibetan Plateau is poorly known. Here, we report new material of Olonbulukia tsaidamensis Bohlin, 1937, which was a member of this stem caprine assemblage, from the Wuzhong region, northern China, confirming the similarity of the Wuzhong Fauna and ‘Qaidam Fauna.’ Based on a biometric study of horncores from the ‘Qaidam’ and Wuzhong faunas, we recognize six taxa from this stem caprine assemblage: O. tsaidamensis, O. sp., Qurliqnoria cheni Bohlin, 1937, Tossunnoria pseudibex Bohlin, 1937, ?Protoryx cf. P. enanus Köhler, 1987, and cf. Pachytragus sp. Among these taxa, Q. cheni and T. pseudibex are probably related to some extant Tibetan endemic species, e.g., the Tibetan antelope, Pantholops hodgsonii (Abel, 1826), and the Himalayan tahr, Hemitragus jemlahicus (Smith, 1826). Others might be ancestral to the Turolian caprine assemblages and even possibly gave rise to the extant Caprina. This work reveals an early radiation of stem caprines along the northern side of the rising Tibetan Plateau and indicates a mixed pattern of pan-Tibetan stem caprine evolution prior to their dispersal out of the Tibetan Plateau.

Parasitic burden in high altitude wild ruminants: Himalayan Tahr (Hemitragus jemlahicus Smith, 1826) and Barking Deer (Muntiacus vaginalis Boddaert, 1785) of Rara National Park, Nepal

Parasites of two high altitude ruminants Himalayan Tahr (Near Threatened) and Barking Deer (Vulnerable) were examined from the Rara National Park, located at 3000 – 4000 m altitude of Nepal, for the first time. A total of 51 faecal samples, 17 from Himalayan Tahr and 34 from Barking Deer were collected in the month of May/June 2012 and 2013. Parasites were found in all the samples of Himalayan Tahr and 33 samples (97.06%) of Barking Deer. Coccidian oocysts (Eimeria sp.), eggs of cestodes (Moniezia sp.) and gastrointestinal nematodes (Strongyloides sp., Trichuris sp., Oxyuris sp., Ascaris sp., Trichostrongylus sp. and Haemonchus sp.) and bronchopulmonary nematode larvae (Dictyocaulus sp. and Muellerius sp.) were identified by means of coprological techniques. Himalayan Tahrs were found to be highly infected with Eimeria sp. (88.24%) and Moniezia sp. (70.59%) compared to Barking Deers, Eimeria sp. (73.53%) and Moniezia sp. (47.06%). In Himalayan Tahr, prevalence of Oxyuris was found to be highest (88.24%) among various nematode parasites followed by Stongyloides sp. (64.71%), Ascaris sp. (52.94%), Trichostrongylus sp. (11.76%), Dictyocaulus sp. (11.76%), Muellerius sp. (11.76%) and Haemonchus sp. (5.88%) while in Barking Deer, 26 (76.47%) samples were found to be positive for nematode parasites. Among the nematode eggs examined, Oxyuris revealed highest prevalence (70.59%) followed by Ascaris sp. (17.65%), Trichuris sp. (8.82%), Dictyocaulus sp. (8.82%) and Haemonchus sp. (2.94%). Present findings highlight that the parasitic diseases are posing considerable threat in the conservation of wild life in Nepal.

Status of blue sheep and Himalayan tahr in Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve, Nepal

A survey of blue sheep (Pseudois nayaur) was conducted in six blocks of Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve (DHR), Nepal. A total of 852 blue sheep were recorded in 73 different groups. The average group size was found to be 11.7 individuals. The average population density of blue sheep in the reserve was found to be 1.28 animals per km2. There were 263 rams, 307 ewes, 89 yearlings and 39 lambs. Among the rams, 126 were classified as trophy rams, 92 as medium rams and 45 as young rams. The ratio of trophy rams to other rams was found to be higher than those found in the earlier studies. The mean sex ratio was 86 males per 100 females and the yearling to ewes ratio was 29 per 100 ewes. The survey of Himalayan tahr (Hemitragus jemlahicus) in Sundaha block recorded 53 individuals with 30 males, 14 females, eight yearlings, and one lamb. The results indicated that the existing quota of blue sheep hunting can be safely continued. In case of higher demands, two more quotas can be added to Barse, Dogadi and Sundaha blocks for the next five years (2008-2012). Himalayan tahrs can be hunted in all the blocks. Sundaha block can sustain four while the rest of the blocks can sustain two Himalayan tahrs per year. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/banko.v21i1.9060 Banko Janakari, Vol. 21, No. 1 2011; 25-30

160 SUCCESSFUL PREGNANCY IN ESTRUS-SYNCHRONIZED HIMALAYAN TAHRS (HEMITRAGUS JEMLAHICUS) BY TRANSCERVICALLY INSEMINATING FRESH AND EXTENDED-CHILLED SEMEN COLLECTED BY ELECTROEJACULATION

In December 2009, 8 female Himalayan tahrs (Hemitragus jemlahicus) were synchronized by inserting CIDR devices for 13 or 15 days. One day before removal of the CIDRs, a combination of pregnant mare serum gonadotropin (PMSG) 400 IU and hCG 200 IU (PG600®, Intervet, Boxmeer, the Netherlands) was intramuscularly injected into each animal and PGF2α was injected at the time of CIDR withdrawal. Semen was collected by electrical stimulation, diluted, cooled to 5°C for 2 h, and maintained in a refrigerator before performing AI twice. Pregnancy diagnosis was conducted by Doppler ultrasonography on March 2, 2010. Four female Himalayan tahrs were impregnated, showing a fetus present in their uteri. In the first experiment in which CIDRs were inserted into the vagina of 4 Himalayan tahrs for 13 days, 3 of the tahrs were transcervically inseminated with fresh semen, whereas 1 was inseminated with frozen–thawed semen 33 h after CIDR removal. As a second insemination experiment, 46 h after CIDR removal, all 4 tahrs were inseminated with diluted (1:3) fresh semen. While the tahr that was later inseminated with frozen–thawed semen did not become pregnant, the other 3 Himalayan tahrs became pregnant. In the second experiment, CIDR devices were inserted into the vaginas of 4 Himalayan tahrs for 15 days. Extended (1:7)-chilled semen was used for transcervical insemination 42 and 49 h after CIDR withdrawal. When performing the second insemination, it was difficult or impossible to penetrate cervical canals. Thus, only 1 tahr became pregnant. These findings show 13 days of CIDR insertion, the dose of PMSG 400 IU and hCG 200 IU, and the use of PGF2α as beneficial for inducing oestrus synchronization, and prove that extended-chilled semen may also be used for artificial breeding of Himalayan tahrs. This is the first report of successful pregnancy induced by artificial insemination of fresh or extended-chilled semen in oestrus-synchronized Himalayan tahrs.